


Love Isn't What You Always Think It Is

by elvirakitties



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Love, M/M, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:08:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23305792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elvirakitties/pseuds/elvirakitties
Summary: Harry sets the record straight.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Severus Snape, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 98
Kudos: 1195





	1. Chapter 1

Harry couldn't help the moan that escaped as he laid back. "I told you, I warned you about doing this last assignment."

"Yes, I am aware, Severus." 

Severus huffed a bit as he fussed with the blankets on the bed as the nurses and healers were doing whatever they were doing. He already discussed with them what was going to be needed for Harry's treatment. "I told you that you would get hurt if you did that assignment." One of the healers handed Severus the scripts for the potions and they left the room. Severus put the script into his potion pouch.

Harry gently touched Severus' arm. Severus stopped fussing for a few seconds and patted Harry's hand. "Severus, please." He sent a reassuring smile to Severus. 

"Fine, but only because you admitted I was correct." Severus began to fussy about the bed again. "You never should have listened to a Gryffindor. Always running into things, getting hurt, never using that thing between your ears. There is a reason it was given to you, it was so you could use it." 

"I always do tell you when you are correct." Harry knew Severus wasn't going to stop fussing about the bed until the bed was set up the way Harry would want it to be. Warm but not too warm, tight but not restrictive. Severus always made sure it was perfect for him when he was hurt on the job. 

"I know which is why I tell you every time I am." Severus ran a hand down Harry's face once he was finished taking care of the bed. "I'm going to get some fresh water, some tea, and some soup from the cafe down the street."

"Make mine chicken." Harry loved how Severus was very predictable in taking care of him. Harry would have everything he needed or even thought he needed while he was injured. Severus would make sure he wanted for nothing. 

"As if I can get you to eat anything else when you are hurt or ill. I'm going to have to go shopping when we get home to get the ingredients for making soup too. I think I will need to also stop at the farmer's market." Severus fussed a bit more over Harry. 

"Thank you." Harry touched Severus' hand as Severus looked at Harry for a few minutes. 

Severus walked away but glared at Ron Weasley who was standing by the door. "This is your fault. He wouldn't have done it if you didn't insist on it." 

"Severus, please, get me a ginger ale too." Harry didn't blame Severus for his anger at Ron. It was Ron's fault. He didn't want to do the assignment and only agreed because of Ron's pressure to do it. He had already given his notice and Ron wanted this assignment to show Harry what he was going to miss. Harry wasn't going to miss ending up in a hospital bed because of Ron's Gryffindor tendencies. 

"Fine, a ginger ale." Severus exited the room. 

Harry counted to three. He knew what was coming. Hermione and Ron had done the same routine ever since he told them he loved Severus. "He doesn't care about you. Look at how he treats you. He is so mean to you." 

"Yeah, Harry, here you are hurt and he is treating you like it's your fault when we know it's mine. I shouldn't have rushed in and you wouldn't have had to save me from the ambush." Ron hadn't seen the magical trap but Harry had. Harry was the one who got hurt while the rest of the squad escaped injuries thanks to his quick thinking.

"Severus loves me."

"No, he doesn't. When someone loves someone they don't treat like he treats you." 

Harry had it. He had been listening to them for two years and they had ignored him. "Let me clue you in on a few things. Love isn't as you two seem to think. You do not know what happens behind closed doors. You also do not just go by the words. Did either of you pay attention to his actions? Did either of you notice what he was doing as he was speaking to me? Did either of you notice the tone, not just the words?" He wasn't expecting either of them to notice, to be honest. Ron, even after three years of being an Auror, never noticed the biggest clues. Ron was never going to move up in the Auror corps. Hermoine would never notice anything subtle. She missed all the subtle clues in everything but especially social relationships. 

"Let me tell you a few things about Severus. The man is exhausted. He is still wearing the same robes from two days ago because he was brewing potions for Hogwarts and here. He will now spend the day brewing the required potions for me because he will want to make sure my potions are the best and fresh. While you may not care for his words, each time he told him that he warned him was his way of saying he was worried about me. Each time he fussed about the blankets wasn't about making himself feel better it was about making me feel better as he knows how I like the blankets just as I know he likes his. Do you think he was leaving here to get me fresh water, tea, and soup because he wanted to? No, he was doing it because he knew it would make me feel better even if I didn't eat or drink it right away. I also know he could have picked up some ginger ale without me even asking. I asked to let him know that I appreciated it and knew why he was doing it." 

"Sure, Harry." Hermione rolled her eyes. "You are just making excuses for him."

"No, Hermione, I am not. You two grew up with a family that loves and supports you. You have a family that tells you and shows you they do. We never had that. We never experienced that. We never had anyone show us how to express it. It is why it has been hard for us to find people to understand us and what we were saying by our actions and why we fit so well. Yes, it wasn't easy but it works for us. Hermione, we have only been married for two years but we have been together for five. We have overcome a lot. Severus and I had to overcome preconceived ideas of what we were like from when I attended Hogwarts. Love isn't just about saying the words. It's also about showing it in other ways." 

"Harry, you are just making up excuses for him, again."

"Hermione, you know how Harry gets. He always believes the best of everyone until they hurt him. Look at what his relatives did to him and he never wanted to have them charged for their abuse." 

"I am not abused nor being abused by Severus." Harry wasn't about to tell them about his sex life. He recognized they would never listen to him. Ron accepted his wife hitting him, her talking down to him because she said that she loved him. Hermione accepted that Ron's rudeness, crude attitude, and his ignoring her because she believed it was what guys did and he gave her flowers when he messed. "Severus shows me he cares in a thousand ways each time he does things for me. He shows me each time he makes sure I have everything fresh before we go out on a special assignment. He shows me each time when I come back from a special assignment by checking to make sure I am not injured. He remembers each special anniversary and makes it special. He gives me reminders as he knows I will forget about them if he doesn't. He always makes sure to replace clothes and things because he knows I won't because I will forget and frankly don't care. He takes care of me. He does little things for me like making sure that there is honey instead of cream for my tea. He always buys me berries at the farmer's market and he hates all types of berries. He will claim they are for his potions but he always makes sure to put some aside for me."

"Harry, that is about making sure you stay with him. It's his way of controlling you." 

Harry wanted to laugh. If they knew about their relationship, they would know who was truly in charge but he wasn't going to tell them. "I am tired. They want me to sleep a bit before they will release me."

"Fine." Hermione's tone was one that told Harry they would be discussing this again. "We will talk when you are better." Harry closed his eyes and was relieved when he heard the door opened and closed. 

______________________________________________________

He opened his eyes and found Severus sleeping in the chair next to him. He sat up and Severus' eyes pop opened. "Hey, I didn't mean to wake you." 

"You didn't. I just closed my eyes a minute ago."

"The minute ago was over an hour ago." Severus smiled. "Thank you." 

Harry frowned for a minute. "For what?" 

"For defending me to your friends without exposing the details of our relationship."

"Sev, each of us values our privacy, I would never tell them anything. They have the emotional IQ of a teenager. You heard?" 

"I did. I encountered Draco about two doors down from your room. We were about to enter when your conversation started. Draco agrees with your assessment of emotionally immature. He wanted to inform you that you got the position." Draco had wanted to blast Weasley into next week but it was more because he hated Weasley and hated anyone who hurt Severus and surprisingly, Harry. The two were good friends now that they were out of Hogwarts and the Dark Lord was gone. Harry and Draco could be true to themselves now and many didn't get to see the true version of either of them. 

Harry started to laugh but stopped as he grunted in pain. "Ron's going to blow a gasket." 

"It's not like you visit with them. The only time you even speak to them was when you worked with him and she put an appearance at some work event." Severus wasn't surprised Harry got the supervisor position. He had been doing the job for a few months and had shown he was capable of doing the job. No more dangerous assignments. 

"True. You know this means you have to cook dinner for Luna and Neville."

"Yes, I'm aware. I expect I shall get her request tonight." 

Harry didn't say anything. He was aware that Severus liked the blond and enjoyed speaking to her as it was the only reason he could figure out Severus would continue to bet against her. Severus had yet to win and he never complained when he lost. He also enjoyed speaking to Neville about different plants and always ordered anything he needed from Neville. "When can I leave?" 

"Now, if you wish." 

"I do wish." 

"I expect no less." Severus stood up and retrieved Harry's clothes from the wardrobe. "I had Maisy bring a fresh set while you were napping." Harry sat up and was about to get out of bed when Severus was in front of him. "Harry."

"Sev?" 

"You know, I do, right?" 

"I know, trust me, I know. If you didn't, you would have let me know. Just like if I didn't, we wouldn't be having this conversation, I wouldn't have attempted to explain things to Ron and Hermione, and I certainly wouldn't be filling out adoption forms with you." Harry gave Severus a quick kiss. "Let's go home."

"Yes, let's."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> set like 20 years later.

Harry opened the morning mail. He left Severus' next to his plate. Severus was in the kitchen making more tea. He read the letter. "Sev, you aren't going to believe this." He was trying not to laugh as he read the letter again. 

"You don't need to yell, I'm right here." Severus put a cup of tea in front of Harry. "I take it that it has to be from Ginny?" 

"Yes." Ginny turned into a surprisingly great friend. After Harry and Severus adopted their first child, Ginny was the one who showed the most support and encouraged them to adopt two more. She even babysat for them until she got married and had her own. They ended up babysitting for each other after that. "You aren't going to believe what she wrote." 

"Let me guess, Weasley got permanently removed from the Aurors and Granger finally got fired?" Severus was the Headmaster of Hogwarts, still. Harry retired from working at the Ministry and took a position at Hogwarts as the Defense instructor. "Brats still sleeping?"

Harry looked up at the ceiling. "Yes, for now. I figure I would give them another thirty minutes before waking them. They were up late last night working on some potions and spells." He looked back at his husband and the letter. "However, no, Weasley is still running the evidence room and Granger is still attempting to move up from the secretarial pool. I think the only reason they still have jobs is because of Percy and Arthur. You know the twins wouldn't hire Ron." 

Severus glanced at the ceiling too. They had charmed the ceiling to change to different colors to show if the children were up, doing something they shouldn't, or even sick. "What is the news that made you laugh?"

"Weasley is divorcing again. I think it's wife number 5? 6? It seems she dumped him because he has the emotional IQ of a kumquat, the maturity of a three-year-old, and about as exciting as watching laundry dry. He asked Granger out again. So the pair are back together." 

Severus laughed. "I think 7 and it must break a record. They haven't even been married for six months. Wait, I thought Granger finally married that American bloke?" 

"No, he dumped her. According to Ginny and Lavender, who still shares an office with her, he dumped her after he kept correcting him about everything. He said no Visa was worth putting up with her." Lavender returned to the workforce after her kids had started Hogwarts as something to keep her busy. She didn't need the income since she married Theo Nott after the war ended but she and Theo liked to work. Their kids worked part-time jobs during the summer holidays for Fred and George. "Lavender got the promotion." 

"Excellent. I am sure she deserves it after having to deal with Granger all day. It will make handling all the complaints that the Ministry gets." 

"True." Harry placed the letter back on the table. He stirred his tea. He felt a hand placed over his hand. 

"Harry, you can't let their words and deeds affect you still." Severus remembered how crushed Harry had been after they had adopted their first child. Granger and Weasley telling Harry that their marriage wouldn't last, how Severus would leave him with the baby, and how Severus didn't love him. While Harry hadn't been close to the pair since the war ended, they were his first friends. 

"What? Oh, no, I mean, yes, I was thinking about that but not in the way you mean." Harry laid his other hand over Severus'. "I got what I wanted, a family. I got a person that loves me for me, not Harry Potter, the Savior, not Harry Potter the one who destroyed the most powerful-"

"Believing your own press?" Severus' smile eased any sting the words might have had in them. 

Harry laughed. "You always do keep me from getting a big head. However, I remember how certain they were about our marriage not working. How we couldn't love each other. Yet, we have four kids upstairs. You are the Headmaster of Hogwarts, I am a professor. Minerva and the others come to stay with us during the holidays. Our oldest is going on to become a Potion Master. Yes, we have had our epic fights, small disagreements, and even rough times for whatever reasons, but never once did either of us think about leaving the other, stopped loving each other, or caring for each other. I wonder if they ever understood what love really is?" 

"All true. We have had some epic fights. I think the longest we went without speaking to each other was a week and really it only lasted that long because someone was hurt and unconscious. I did thank you properly for quitting after that?" 

"Yes, you did. Once I recovered, I believe you prescribed three more days of bed rest and we didn't do much resting." 

"Ohhhh yuck, so didn't need to hear that." Severus and Harry turned and saw their four kids standing there. "It's bad enough watching the two of you kissing but to hear you discussing that. Sorry, my parents are virgins." Their oldest, Septimus, headed to the table. 

"I don't know, I think it's romantic. They have been married forever. I want their type of marriage." Henrietta kissed her parents on the cheeks before sitting next to her older brother. 

"You would. All mush all the time." Their youngest son, Sophus, shook his head. "May I go to Scorpius' house after breakfast?"

Herta climbed into Severus' lap. She was their youngest and was starting Hogwarts in September. "Are we going to see Grandma Minnie soon?" 

Harry smiled as he listened to his family make plans for the day, the week, and the summer holiday. He was right. They may not say they love each other every day but they showed it every day. It wasn't a perfect marriage by most people's standards but it was perfect to him and for him.


End file.
